Memphis finds no proof former player cheated

The Associated PressDerrick Rose, shown as a senior at Chicago's Simeon Career Academy, is the subject of allegations about his SAT score.

MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Memphis says it should keep the victories from the 2007-08 season which ended in the national title game after an internal investigation turned up no proof that a former men's basketball player cheated on his SAT exam.

"Certainly, the University of Memphis should not suffer a financial penalty or vacation of records for the 2008 NCAA Tournament as a result of this allegation," according to a report detailing the school's investigation into NCAA allegations.

The report, released to The Associated Press and other news outlets Tuesday under a public records request, details Memphis' internal probe into accusations that a former player allowed a stand-in to take his SAT. The report also looked into charges of grade tampering on behalf of the player.

Most names in the report were redacted by the school because of privacy concerns, but an attorney for former Memphis star Derrick Rose has acknowledged that Rose cooperated with an investigation of similar allegations while still a student.

Rose, the overall No. 1 pick in the 2008 NBA draft and the rookie of the year, was the point guard for the Memphis team that lost to Kansas in the title game.

School officials argue that even if the NCAA's Committee on Infractions believes a former player cheated, the program should not be penalized because the school was unaware of any wrongdoing.

"At this point, there is not sufficient evidence on which to conclude that (the player) knew or should have known that he was ineligible at the time of his participation in the NCAA championship," the report says.

Memphis will present its findings to the Committee on Infractions on Saturday in Indianapolis. Former coach John Calipari, now with Kentucky, is expected to participate by phone.

The report released Tuesday says school officials have encouraged the player -- whose name was blacked out -- to cooperate with the NCAA investigation, but his "consistent response" is that he took the test and he already answered the same questions in 2007.

The report also says the school had no proof the SAT was fraudulent until notified by the Educational Testing Service that the player's score had been canceled. That letter came May 5, 2008, after Rose's only season at Memphis.

Memphis officials first began to look into the player's test score in October 2007 when a public school employee in the player's home city contacted the university about possible grade tampering.

The school says the only proof of a fraudulent test score comes from a forensic document examiner hired by the NCAA to look at the player's handwriting samples. She was only able to say that the player's handwriting "probably" did not match the handwriting on the test. The university says the expert's conclusion is not strong enough to prove the player knowingly cheated on the exam.

Kentucky officials were aware of the allegations when they hired Calipari and believe the coach was open and honest about the situation. Johnson interviewed several high-profile coaches when Calipari left, but couldn't lure them to Memphis. So he turned to 31-year-old Calipari assistant Josh Pastner.